A man who had been shot was found dead behind the wheel of a locked car near a wealthy village after it crashed into a ditch. 

The man, who is aged in his 20s, was found in the car near Henley, West Sussex, at around 6am on Bank Holiday Monday morning. 

Investigators have launched a probe to try and establish if the dead man was driving at the time he was killed.

The investigation will try to establish if the car was moving when the fatal shot was fired. He was the only occupant of the vehicle which had careered off the road.

A source close to the investigation confirmed a shotgun was seen inside the locked car.

Pictured: Police attend the scene where a man was found dead behind the wheel of a car near Henley, West Sussex

The shock discovery on Bank Holiday Monday sparked a police investigation.

A spokesman for Sussex Police said: 'Emergency services were called to a report of a car having left the carriageway of the A286 near Midhurst at around 6am.

'A man in his 20s, the only occupant of the vehicle, was sadly confirmed deceased at the scene.

'His next of kin have been informed.'

Sussex police said traffic would be diverted around the village of Henley while they carried out an investigation to establish the full circumstances of the situation.